12 Days of Christmas - Day 11

I feel this is another thing that there's some variation of on my wish list every year. Pajamas! 

I'm not entirely sure what it says about me, but my most frequent motivator to do some laundry is that I run out of favorite pajamas. The highlight of my day is the end - I get comfy in my PJs and climb into my cozy spot in bed with a good book on my kindle, and the mattress heater set to preheat. Which generally leads my husband to question the hour vs me already in bed. 

These look really cozy. They're PajamaGram - Winter Pajamas for Women. I've got another style of PJs from PajamaGram, but these look even more cozy. I have the other ones in a medium size and a large size, so I'd imagine either size will work for these too. 

12 Days of Christmas - Day 10

In my wandering and shopping, Facebook has started recommending Drew Barrymore's cosmetic line, FlowerBeauty.com. The first product they recommended was this 'Celestial Supernova Priming Whip' that looks interesting. The site also has a 'watercolor eye tint' (what is this witchery??). 

Anyway, I see my daughter having so much time messing around with makeup looks, and figured maybe I could follow an example a little closer to my own age and have some fun sprucing up my appearance too. 

I don't think there's much on this site that I wouldn't try.

12 Days of Christmas - Day 9

Being a big fan of office supplies, and carrying around a paper planner for longer than a decade, I've had my eye on these things a few times, but don't own any yet. 

They're OliBlock magnetic clips, and it looks like the shop just sells them through Etsy. These are opened flat out, but when they fold over, the two fat parts are magnets that hold the papers between them together. This particular screenshot is the Gradient 5-pack. There were some cute floral ones too, but they must have been bigger, as it was just a single one sold at a time. 

There were several fun, bright colors. Being on Etsy, it looks like the availability may change regularly, so I wouldn't get my heart set on a particular color ;)

12 Days of Christmas - Day 8

This is a classic for my list, really. I always wear slippers. So at least once a year, I need new ones. I prefer the slide on ones, but still covering my tootsies. My shoe size is a 9, usually, and the slippers I'm wearing right this minute are Pajamagram size 9-10.

These are some cute ones I found on the Target site, where I would apparently want an XL, according to their size chart. The label says they're "Isotoner Women's Sweater Knit Slippers."

I do appreciate the actual sole on them, since I do forget I'm wearing slippers and walk out to the mailbox, or drive to the bus stop if it isn't too wet outside.

12 Days of Christmas - Day 7

While I already have two, I want more! LOL 

A new Holly Aiken bag is on my wish list. The two I have are a shoulder bag larger than this one, and one that's nearly clutch sized - barely holds my wallet and glasses, but perfect when that's all I need to carry. Now I've got my eye on the Piper, with a custom design, of course. It'll be big enough to carry my planner, along with my wallet and sunglasses, especially for when I got back to the office next year. 

These bags are THE best. The two I have show no wear/tear after years of use. A friend told me if it gets nasty, you can actually put it in the dishwasher - it's vinyl and seat belt straps! I did drop one in some mud once, and it wiped right off with paper towel and a spritz of my regular cleaner. So the bags are totally worth the investment, and I'm worth the cost of another bag :D 

Since designing it is half the fun, I slapped the whole screenshot of my new dream bag. Wouldn't that be a beauty for my daily trek, since I still rely on my paper planner?

Fingers crossed I can add to my collection, and take a bit out of the sting of returning to office.

12 Days of Christmas - Day 6

 For years - maybe even decades - I've been wanting to have the perfect pair of black boots. I finally ordered some knee high brown boots a while back, and they're good...for outfits that I like brown boots with. 

But there are days when only black will do. I have some shorter black boots, but with skinny jeans or leggings, I need something to thoroughly cover the cuff. Knee-high, that is. 

These are just a random sampling from my search. What they all have in common: low heel, not a lot of decoration, all black. I'm probably a size 8.5 or so (sometimes reviews will recommend sizing up or down, if they don't have half sizes). And as picky as it sounds, the more expensive ones are hopefully less-likely to leave me with the black scuffed off and me coloring with a sharpie marker on my new-ish boots ;) I'm worth the extra expense for some really nice leather boots. 

If you have great black boots, where did you find them? And are they lasting well? I probably should have said something about a tread for ice/snow, but if it's bad I'll usually wear my winter Sorel's or my big Doc Martens. I just want something easier to slip on and off and a lil more comfortable.

12 Days of Christmas - Day 5

While I don't wear them much at home, I can somehow picture myself in comfy dresses when I'm back to work in the office. I've seen mention a few times of 100-day dress challenges - people wear the same dress for 100 days of work (in a row!) and just change it up with their accessories. I don't think I want to take it that far, but the dress does look classy and comfortable. 

This is the Ellie Midi Wrap dress from Wool&. I would wear a medium, and I like the modern red color. I like that the tie-waist gives it a shape in the middle, and if I don't feel like cleavage, I can always layer with a cami. I also really like the 3/4 length sleeves. I feel like half the time my arms are too long, so a long-sleeved shirt or dress not reaching my hands feels awkward. 3/4 length means we're not even pretending. Hahahaha...

Anyway, I would love to receive this dress, and maybe whatever tights or accessories someone thinks would go well. 
 

12 Days of Christmas - Day 4

I'm trying to drink more water. 

Isn't everyone? Like, there is no one who is drinking too much water, amiright? I've been using Waterdrop. It's just a lil cube of flavor you add to your water. Some people mix and match, for a more customized flavor, I usually just add one for a bit of interest. I already have a steel bottle and a glass bottle. I'd love more drops (especially the new Flair and Nero flavors) and the keychain made to hold a cube on-the-go. My favorites so far are the berry-ish flavors...Love, Boost, Focus... More water is never bad. 

If you're curious, some add these to seltzer water as well. I like good, old fashioned, cold water. Maybe with a cube or so of ice, that will melt soon enough, but keep my water icy cold for a few minutes longer. 

I like this stuff and think it's sort of fun. I'd love a Waterdrop package under the tree this Christmas :)

12 Days of Christmas - Day 3

I always need another hoodie :D 

I got a great zombie one a month or so ago, but one of the regular sweatshirts I like to sleep in is literally falling apart. A few holes in the back, I could ignore, but now the front is wearing through. Awkward if I leave my bedroom still in my sleep clothes, eh?

While it doesn't necessarily need to be black, I like either of these cozy pagan hoodie designs. And I like supporting smaller sellers, instead of Amazon. Which, don't get me wrong, still gets plenty of my support when I need things reliably shipped to arrive ASAP. But this is why we started my wish list early, right?

If they're unisex sizing, a medium is usually adequate. 

Next year, I may be changing away from cool graphics out of necessity, to dress for the (*gasp*) office. But we'll burn that bridge when we get there, right? And I'll still want to change into something I really like once I get home...

12 Days of Christmas - Day 2

I probably should have specified when I started - my days won't necessarily be consistent. I started early because shipping is such an...adventure, but I see no need to rush through either.

I'm perpetually cold. One of my major comforts in life is comfy socks. And the favorite socks I own right now are SmartWool compression socks. I love that they're snug (the compression) and padded in all the right places (targeted cushioning). Looks like I'd wear a M by their size chart. The pair of choice looks like it's available in taupe, charcoal, or gray, and I'd like any of them.

If you've got other warm compression socks you'd recommend, let me know! I see lots of ads for Bombas, and they've got some fun prints - anyone tested them out?

12 Days of Christmas - Day 1

My 12 Days of Christmas are my wish-list, of sorts. I hate being put on the spot when my parents, kids, or husband looks at me and says, "So what do you want for Christmas?" This anxiety, even with our closest loved ones, it part of what leads us to that 'mom' answer: "Oh, I don't need anything but your hugs."

While their hugs are THE best thing, it turns out I don't mind opening useful gifts on Christmas morning either. So I've traditionally listed my '12 Days of Christmas' starting on December 1. But, COVID. Shipping times are rumored to be atrocious, so I'm starting early, in case someone wants to get something from outside our little town.

Please let me know if you've got/want/know something about the goodies on my list - or have an even better suggestion!

Day 1:

Some more Judy Blue jeans! While it appears a lot of styles are out of my size on their official website, I see them available at other sites too.

I got a pair of these jeans with a Stitch Fix box a while back and really like them. They're a size 29, which fits great.

I don't like a huge flair, and I'm tired of rips in my jeans. Yeah, apparently I'm getting older every day. And that's okay.

So, in summary: relaxed or skinny fit, not cropped, not distressed, and straight leg, tapered, or tiny flair. Size 29.

As much as some people prefer leggings for casual wear, I just can't see myself getting on-board. My old school legs love being wrapped in nice denim.